


Night

by Nope



Category: Doctor Who (2005), Torchwood
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2007-02-02
Updated: 2007-02-02
Packaged: 2018-11-02 22:48:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,000
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10954332
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nope/pseuds/Nope
Summary: You must remember this.





	Night

1.

Mickey used to spend nights after work and weekends with Rose or down the pub with mates, watching footy -- which, okay, he still does sometimes, but it's not quite the same when half your mates still think you bumped your missis off -- but these days he has much more important things to do with his spare time. Out in the depths of cyberspace are the hints and traces of the strangeness of the world. Not the one he thought he lived in, where people went from one moment to the next, from one place to the next, all in a straight line. The one with crazy paving days and horrors in the darkness and the light.

 

2.

They meet in an exotic-technology chat room. Some guy was bragging about having got his hands on some kind of transportation device. TehMickster hinted around was it blue and box shaped and full of blonde girl? What sort of noise did it make? And this TTechGal came in and started asking all sorts of technical questions, but not like a sceptic, like someone with an agenda.

I reckon he's blowing smoke, Mickey sent her.

Me too, she sent back. That was a good question -- about the sound of the engines. How did you think of that?

So he lies and talks about how he works at a garage, and she turns out to know an awful lot about cars and computers and, when he finally, eventually, brings up his theories about aliens, actually listens to them without mocking and even suggests a few things. Nothing ground breaking, but enough that Mickey feels he's met a kindred spirit.

 

3.

They end up talking a lot. Without Rose around, he ends up picking up all the overtime at the garage and TTechGirl seems to always work late, so their schedules coincide -- Mickey gets home late, eats, and logs on in time to keep her company while she does end-of-day paperwork and the like. The boring bits, she calls them. He knows she does stuff with computers, although not exactly what, and that her first name is Tosh, and that she seems to be brilliant at absolutely everything, although she's so self-effacing he only gets that in little flashes. She's way smarter than him, but never patronising, and he's gotten her to "^_^" at him once or twice. They make fun of the nutters on the boards and share links to newspaper reports that might be alien. He's always seen the ones she sends him -- half the time he's had them bookmarked for hours to send to her -- but he pretends he hasn't because she gets bright and enthusiastic when he lets her tell him and its weirdly like having Rose again. A more upper class Rose with multiple-degrees. Okay, it's not like Rose at all, but it's good. He wouldn't admit it to anyone out loud, but she makes the nights less lonely.

 

4.

Until one night she accidentally lets slip the name Torchwood, Mickey asks "what's that then?" and she abruptly logs off.

He leaves her messages, first amused -- the IT wizard lost her routing again -- then concerned and then, as the days mount up and she still doesn't come back online, frantic.

It's Rose all over again. Except still not, because at least he has some vague idea that Rose is alive and well and travelling with the Doctor and all he really knows is a name, "Tosh", that's probably not even real.

And "Torchwood". Something else to look for, inbetween big blue boxes.

 

5.

TTechGirl (23:46:12): Sorry, boss caught me IMing instead of work. 

TTechGirl (23:46:18): Listen, I've been thinking.

TTechGirl (23:46:21): We should meet up. In person. I know this place.

 

6.

She's smaller than he expected, and wearing glasses, hair pulled back in a severe ponytail, hunched in on herself in a plain, unremarkable suit.

"Tosh?" Mickey asks, even though he's sure and, anyway, it's late, last call any minute now, and the bar, a dark, little, out of the way place, is all but empty.

She jumps a little, glancing up with her head still bowed, then forces a smile. "Mickey Smith?" He nods, and she waves at the other chair. "Please."

"You look like the photo you sent me," Mickey says, feeling stupid as soon as he starts speaking.

"I'll get you a drink," she says.

"I'll get them," he says, reaching for his wallet.

"No! ...please, let me."

He requests a half of Broadside. She goes to the bar, gets it, gets her own -- a JD and Coke -- and comes back. Beer slops when she hands him the glass and she swears, sharply.

"No, 's fine, really. My fault." He takes a few long gulps to show her. See? Fine. Why do you look so stricken. Actually, why does she? "Are you okay."

"Yes. Yes, I'm -- No. I'm so sorry, Mickey."

"For what?"

"They know. That you've been looking for Torchwood. That you've been talking to me. That photo I sent you -- it's really a virus. It's already cleaned your hard-drive of anything even vaguely related. You've probably lost half your own stuff. That's just how it works."

"What?" Mickey says. He's having trouble concentrating. "What are you talking about? What is Torchwood?"

"I just -- I liked having someone to talk to. I have no one to talk to about any of this stuff. No one, and you seemed to understand and I just -- I was so stupid! Trying to be so careful and I just blurt it out. Hi, I work for Torchwood! Aliens are my thing! Get your secrets here!"

"Aliens?" Mickey manages, shoving himself to his feet, dizzy. "What -- what have you done?"

"I am so, so sorry," she says.

He runs, thinking, remember, remember, re

 

1.

His shoes stank of sweat though he didn't know why. Mickey shrugged, stuck them out on the dryer on the balcony to air, and went to watch the morning cartoons.


End file.
